Power controlling device for a remote toy equipped with a reversible electric motor



Feb. 7, 1967 J. L. BONANNO 3,303,403

POWER CONTROLLING DEVICE FOR A REMOTE TOY EQUIPPED WITH A REVERSIBLEELECTRIC MOTOR Filed 060. 1, 1964 :5 Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG.

SLIDE SPEED CONTROL 5 END POLHRlrY REVERsflL PROPULSION MOTOR /ZOSTEERING- ZS MOTOR POLHRH'Y. 2 X

REVERSRL I 2% 7 2| INVENTOR:

3 45 a JOSEPH 1.. aommmo I a 34 i M v H SOURCE OF r CURRENT 4H?- Feb. 7,1967 J. L. BONANNO 3,303,403

POWER CONTROLLING DEVICE FOR A REMOTE TOY EQUIPPED WITH A REVERSIBLEELECTRIC MOTOR Filed Dec. 1, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet z S "69 62 5| ll 45 6832 72 7 5 a8 ,1 s K 52 f I 5 2 (Emu 66 a2 :4 5+ w w r 49 6% 6 0 69 20INVENTOR 2 JOSEPH L. BONHNNO ATTORNEYS Feb. 7, 1967 J L. BONANNO3,303,403

POWER CONTROLLING DEVICE FOR A REMOTE TOY EQUIPPED WITH A REVERSIBLEELECTRIC MOTOR Filed D90. 1, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR:

JOSEPH L. BONHNNO ATTOR NEYS nited states Patent O 3,303,403 POWERCONTROLLING DEVICE FOR A REMOTE TOY EQUIPPED WITH A REVERSIBLE ELEC-TRIC MOTOR Joseph L. Bonanno, South Orange, N.J., assignor to De LuxeReading Corp., Elizabeth, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Dec.1, 1964, Ser. No. 415,051 7 Claims. (Cl. 318-257) This invention relatesgenerally to electrical controllers for devices such as motor-actuatedtoys, and has particular reference to an improved remote-controlapparatus for regulating the flow of electric current to a toy or thelike.

Merely by way of example, the improved controlling device will bedescribed and illustrated herein in a form suitable for use incontrolling a relatively remote toy or other article equipped with twoseparate reversible electric motors. The embodiment of the inventionherein chosen for illustration and description is primarily intended forthe control of a toy vehicle having a propulsion motor and a steeringmotor.

One of the objectives of the invention is to provide a control apparatusin which the manipulation of a single control arm is capable ofregulating the operation of two motors of the character described. Oneof the features of the invention is to provide a control arm which ismounted in a special manner whereby it is movable backand-forth in atranslational manner, and also movable back-and-forth in a twistingdirection. T he translational movements control one of the motorcircuits, the twisting movements control the other.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device of the characterdescribed in which the control arm has a graspable part projecting froman enclosed housing, the

electric control contacts, resistors, connection terminals, etc., beingsafely enclosed to assure continued functioning in the contemplatedmanner over long periods of time. In the preferred embodiment of theinvention the housing is provided with a slot, and the control arm has apart projecting out of the slot, the inner part being mounted forswinging movement of the control arm along the slot and also fortwisting movement of the control arm about its own axis.

A further objective of the invention is to provide a device in which asource of direct current is readily and safely available within thehousing described, and it is a particular feature of the invention toprovide and arrange the several mechanical and electrical components ofthe device in a manner which permits the direct current to be madeavailable in the form of replaceable dry cells.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide for the control ofat least one reversible motor by a reversingswitch means activated bythe twisting movements of the control arm.

Another object of the invention is to provide an arrangement whereby oneof the motor circuits is provided with resistance-varying means underthe control of the translational movements of the control arm.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the translationalmovements of the control arm regulate not only the amount, but also thedirection, of the current supplied to one of the motors. Thus, inemploying the device for the control of a toy vehicle, the propulsionmotor can be remotely regulated to drive the vehicle in either one orthe other direction, and it can also be regulated to vary its speed andthus increase or decrease the .speed of movement of the vehicle.

Among the more detailed features of the invention are the special meansprovided for allowing the translational and twisting movements of thecontrol arm to achieve the 3,303,403 Patented Feb. 7, 1967 regulationsof current referred to, and in the design and arrangement of componentparts whereby an apparatus of compact, rugged, and reliable character,lending itself readily to low-cost manufacture in commercial quantities,can be produced.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, in which- FIG. 1 is a perspective view of thepower controlling device as it appears to the user;'

FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram;

FIG. 3 is an elevational view, from one side, of the supportingstructure and related parts housed within the enclosure shown in FIG. 1,the enclosure being indicated by dot-and-dash lines in FIG. 3;

FIG. 4 is a view of the supporting structure of FIG. 3, from the otherside;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view substantially along the line 55 of FIG.3;

FIG. 6 is a view of the parts shown in FIG. 5, as seen from underneath;and

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view substantially along the direction 77 ofFIG. 3.

Referring first to FIG. 1, the apparatus presents itself to the user inthe form of a housing 10 provided with a convexly curved top wall 11having a slot 12 therein; a control arm 13 projecting out of the slot 12and provided at its outer end with a graspable control handle 14 or thelike; and flexible connection wires 15 extending from the base of thehousing 10. The wires 15 may be as long as may be desired and they arearranged in a bundle of four, two of them defining part of the circuitof one of the electric motors to be controlled, the other two definingpart of the circuit of the other motor. The housing 10 may be composedof any appropriate material, and inexpensive non-conductive plasticlends itself readily to the purpose. Any exterior configuration orornamentation may be provided, subject only to the safe accommodation ofthe component parts within the housing and the ability of the controlarm to project from the housing, so as to be movable both in atranslational and a twisting manner.

Before describing the structural details of the interior parts of thedevice, reference will be made to FIG. 2 in which circuitry is shown forenabling the controller of FIG. 1 to regulate a relatively remote toyvehicle equipped in FIG. 1 consist of two connecting wires 18 and 19leading to the motor 16, and two connecting wires 20 and 21 leading tothe motor 17. The control arm 13 of FIG. 1 is represented in FIG. 2 by adotted line bearing the same reference numeral. It carries twoconductive sliders 22 and 23. The slider 22 is in permanent electriccontact with a conductive rail 24, and the slider 23 is in permanentelectric contact with a conductive rail 25 arranged in spaced parallelrelation to the rail 24. The atrow 26 indicates the movability of thecontrol arm 13, in a translational manner, to shift the sliders 22 and23 along the conductive rails 24 and 25, respectively.

The rail 24 is electrically connected to the conducting wire 18, and therail 2-5 is similarly connected to the conducting wire 19.

Arranged in parallel adjacence to opposite end regions of the rail 25are conductive bus-bars 27 and 28. They are in alignment with eachother, but spaced apart. As a result, when the control arm 13 is movedin one direction (e.g., toward the left in FIG. 2) the slider 23establishes an electrical connection between the rail 25 and the bus-bar27; when the control arm 13 is in the opposite range of itstranslational movement (i.e., toward the right as seen in FIG. 2) theslider 23 establishes a connection between the rail 25 and the bus-bar28; and when the control arm 13 is in the medial region of itstranslational travel, the slider 23 is in contact with neither of thebusbars 27, 2 8.

A source of direct electric cur-rent is indicated in FIG. 2 at 29, inthe form of four dry cells 30. The bus-bar 27 is connected by a leadwire or element 31 to the positive terminal 32 of the current source,and the bus-bar 28 is similarly connected as at 33 to the negativeterminal 34 of the current source. It follows that when the control arm13 establishes contact between the rail 25 and the bus-bar 27 it impartsa positive polarity to the rail 25, and when it establish-es connectionbetween the rail 25 and the bus-bar 28 it imparts a negative polarity toit. When it is in the medial region of its movement, the rail 25 iscompletely disconnected from the source of current.

Also arranged in similar parallel adjacence to the opposite end regionsof the rail 24 are resistors 35 and 36 respectively. They are also insubstantial alignment but spaced from each other. They are so arrangedthat when the control arm 13 is moved in one direction the slider 22establishes electric contact between the rail 24 and the resistor 35,and when the arm 13 is moved in the opposite direction the slider 22establishes contact between the rail 24 and the resistor 36. In themedial region of its travel, the slider 22 is out of contact with bothresistors 35, 36.

The resistor 35 is electrically connected at one end 37, by a connection38, to the lead 33 extending to the negative pole of the source ofcurrent. The resistor 36 has its end 39 connected in a similar way, vialead 40, to the connection 31 extending to the positive terminal 32 ofthe current source. -It is to be noted that the connections from theresistors 35 and 36 to the current source are in opposed relation to theconnections of the bus-bars 27 and 28.

The rail 24 is electrically connected to the wire 18. It follows thatthe circuit of the propulsion motor 16 is completed either through thebus-bar 27 and the resistor 35 or through the bus-bar 28 and theresistor 36. Moreover, as the sliders 22 and 23 move toward the endregions of their travel, either in one direction or the other, theamount of resistance in the circuit is correspondingly varied. Forexample, if the control arm 13 is moved to the extreme right-hand end ofits travel, as viewed in FIG. 2, none or very little of the resistance36 will remain in the circuit. This means that the motor 16 will bedriven at maximum speed in that particular direction. As the arm 13 isdrawn toward the central part of its movement, the amount of resistance36 is gradually increased so that the motor 16 slows down until thecurrent is cut off completely. Then, if the arm 13 is moved in theopposite direction, i.e., toward the left of FIG. 2, the direction ofcurrent flow to the motor 16 is reversed, and the resistance 35 isgradually reduced until, again, the motor is driven at its maximum speedin the opposite direction.

The regulation of current flow to the steering motor 17 is controlled bytwisting movements of the control arm 13. For this purpose the controlarm carries a pair of conductive sliders 41 and 42 arranged in opposedbut concentric relation. The slider 41 moves along an arcuate path inwhich a set of three electric contacts 43, 44 and 45 are arranged. Theslider 42 similarly moves along a path on which a second set of thecontacts 46, 47 and 48 are arranged.

The center contact 44 is electrically connected to the wire 20, and thecenter contact 47 is connected to the wire 21. The end contacts 43 and46 are both connected to the lead 31 and are thus both connected to thepositive terminal 32 of the current source. Similarly, the opposite set45, 48, of end contacts is electrically connected together by means ofthe lead 33, and are thus in connection with the negative terminal 34 ofthe current source.

The twisting movement of the arm 13 is controlled so that the slider 41is always in contact with the center contact 44 and can optionallyconnect this contact either to the end contact 43 (positive polarity) orto the contact 45 (negative polarity). As the slider 41 moves in onedirection, the slider 42 automatically moves in the opposite direction.It is similarly arranged in permanent wiping contact with the centercontact 47, and connects the latter either to the end contact 48 or tothe end contact 46.

The result of this is that twisting of the control arm in one directionwill conduct the current to the motor 17 in one direction, and twistingthe arm in the opposite direction will cause the current to be fed tothe motor 17 in the opposite direction. When the arm 13 is in thecentral part of its twisting movement there is no connection between thecurrent source and the motor 17.

The component parts diagrammatically represented in FIG. 2 are embodiedin a mechanical arrangement of components as shown in FIGS. 3-7. Whereappropriate, the reference numerals employed in FIG. 2 will be appliedto their counterparts in FIGS. 3-7.

The supporting .structure within the housing 10 consists of a base plate49 and an upstanding panel 50. These parts may be conveniently formed ofplastic material. They are non-conductive in character. The base plate49 has been shown provided with a marginal upstanding flange 51, andwith oppositely extending wings 52 by means of which it is removablysecured to the housing 10. The panel 50 may be advantageously providedwith opposite rigidified leg formations by means of which it is securedto the base plate 49 in rigid fashion.

The control arm 13 is mounted within a plastic element 53 having alateral projection 54 (see FIG. 7) extending through an arcuate slot 55in the panel 50. The pin or element 54 may carry a washer 56 or the likeat its outer end, and a compression spring 57 may be interposed betweenthe element 56 and the panel 50 so that the part 53 is frictionally heldin any setting to which it may be adjusted, during manipulations of thecontrol arm 13.

At its lower end, the part 53 is provided with a pivot pin 72 journaledin a boss 73 formed on the panel 50. This pivot pin constitutes the axisof translational swinging movement of the control arm 13.

The control arm 13 is pivoted at its lower end to the base plate 49, byany appropriate mounting permitting twisting movements about a verticalaxis. Preferably the lower end of the control arm 13 is formed as ajournal 58 rotatably mounted within a bearing 59 formed in the plate 49.A washer or flange 60 may be mounted on the lower end of the journalpart 53, to prevent upward withdrawal of the control arm. Mounted uponthe outer surface of the bearing 59 is a wire element 61 defining a pairof spaced arms (see FIG. 6) serving as stops to limit the swingingmovements of the carrier element 62 secured to the journal 58 on theupper side of the base plate 49. The carrier 62 swings back and forththrough a minute arcuate distance, limited by the pin 63 which projectsdownwardly from the carrier 62 through a slot 64 in the plate 49, thepin 63 encountering one of the wires 61 when the element 62 is swung inone direction, and encountering the other wire 61 when the swing of thecarrier 62 is in the opposite direction.

The carrier 62 is provided at its opposite ends with the sliders 41 and42.

To permit the control arm to be pivoted at its lower end, yet movable ina translational manner as indicated by the arrows 65 in FIG. 3, thelower region of the control arm is formed as a coil spring 66. The upperend is anchored in any suitable manner to the lower end of a rodextending downwardly from the support element 53 -(see FIGS. 3 and 7)and the lower end of the spring 66 is anchored as at 67 to the carrierelement 62 (see FIG. 5).

The rails 24 and 25 are rigidly mounted on the panel 50 by any suitablemeans. They are generally arcuate and substantially concentric with thelower end of the control arm-13. They are so mounted that they areexposed on one surface of the panel 50 (the surface visible in FIG. 3)where they can be contacted by the sliders 22 and 23 carried on thecentral part 53 of the control arm 13 The rail 25 has a part projectingthrough to the opposite side of the panel 50 (see FIG. 4) from which thewire 19 extends; Similarly, the rail 24 has a part projecting throughthe panel 50 to which the connecting wire 18 is attached.

Mounted on the panel 50 adjacent to the rail 25 are the bus-bars 27 and28, these bars being parts of strips of metal which extend downward asshown in FIG. 4; At its lower end, the strip 27 is connected to ormerges with the elongated strip 31 secured flat on the upper face of thebase plate 49. The opposite end of this strip is connected, by a rivetextending downwardly through the plate 49, to a metal element 32establishing contact with one terminal of the current source. The lowerend of the strip 28, is similarly connected to or merged with ahorizontal conductive strip 33 whose opposite end is connected by arivet 69 to a conductive element 34 establishing contact with theopposite terminal of the current source.

In similar fashion, conductive strips 38 and 40 extend upwardly alongthe panel 50 (see FIG. 4) and at their upper ends they are connected(through the panel 50) with the ends 37 and 39 of the resistors 35 and36 respectively. These resistors are arranged in a general dispositionconcentric with the lower pivot, 50 that the slider 22 on the controlarm 13 can encounter the resistors as it moves along the rail 24 duringmanipulations, back and forth, of the control arm 13. The lower end ofthe strip 38 is connected to the strip 33 (see FIG. 5) and the lower endof the strip 40 is similarly connected to the strip 31.

Also mounted on the upper face of the base plate 49, between the strips31 and 33, and directly beneath the sliders 41 and 42 on the carrier 62,are the contact buttons 44 and 47. They have parts extending downwardlythrough the. plate 49, and beneath the latter these parts are connectedto the wires 20 and 21 respectively, as indicated in FIG. 6.

It Will'thus be seen that a simple manipulation of the single controlarm 13 by the user enables him to control both motor circuits. Swingingmovements of the handle in the direction of the arrows 65 of FIG. 3regulate the amount and the direction of current to the propulsion motorthrough the conducting wires 18 and 19 which, as hereinbefore mentioned,may be of any desired length. At the same time, twisting movements ofthe control arms serve to actuate a reversal of the direction of currentto the steering motor 17 through the conducting wires 20 and 21. Whenthe control arm is twisted into the direction shownin FIG. 5, the wiper41 establishes contact between the center contact 44 and the contactstrip 33; while at the same time the wiper 42 establishes a connectionbetween the center contact 47 and the conductive strip 31. The swingingmovement of the carrier 62 is limited by the encounter of the pin 63with the wire 61 shown uppermost in FIG. 6. A twist of the control armin the opposite direction will shift the carrier 62 just sufliciently toallow the wiper 41 to leave the strip 33 and establish contact with thestrip 31, while at the same time the wiper or slider 42 will breakcontact with the strip 31 and establish it with the strip 33. Theswinging movement of the element 62 in that direction is limited by thepin 63 as it encounters the lower wire 61 shown in FIG. 6.

The housing may be conveniently formed of two parts to permit readyseparation for insertion or replacement of dry cells 30. Also, thehandle 14 shown in FIG. 1 may be advantageously formed as a separateelement of plastic to be applied to the upper end of the arm 13 afterthe assembly of the parts Within the housing 10.

In numerous respects, the structural arrangement of component parts, andother details, may obviously be modified by those skilled in the artwithout necessarily constituting a departure from the spirit and scopeof the invention as expressed in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a power controlling device for a remote toy equipped with tworeversible electric motors: a housing having a slot; a control armprojecting from the interior of the housing through said slot and havinga graspable outer end, the inner end of said arm being mounted withinsaid housing for back-and-forth twisting movements and also forback-and-forth translational movements along saidslot; a source ofdirect current located within said housing; flexible lead wiresextending therefrom to said motors, there being a separate circuit foreach motor; a first reversing switch means interposed in one circuit andgoverned by said translational movements of the control arm forregulating the direction of current flow to the first of said motors; asecond reversing switch means interposed in the other circuit andgoverned by said twisting movements'of the control arm for regulationthe direction of current flow to the second of said motors, and aresistance-varying means in one of said circuits governed by thecorresponding movements of said control arm for controlling themagnitude of current flow to its respective motor.

2. A power controlling device as defined in claim 1, in which said firstreversing switch means comprises a conductive rail mounted in saidhousing and connected to said first motor, a pair of bus bars mounted inspaced relation alongside opposite end regions of said rail, said busbars being connected to the positive and negative terminals,respectively, of said source of current, and a conductive slider carriedby said control arm and adapted to slide along said rail and connect itelectrically to one or the other of said bus bars as the control arm ismoved translationally.

3. A power controlling device as defined in claim 1, in which saidsecond reversing switch means comprises two sets of electrical contactsmounted in said housing along opposed arcs concentric with the twistingaxis of the control arm, each set comprising three contacts of which thecenter contacts are connected to said second motor, the outer contactsof each set being connected to the corresponding outer contacts of theother set and to the positive and negative terminals, respectively, ofsaid source of current, and conductive sliders carried by said controlarm and adapted to slide arcuately along said contact sets,respectively, and connect each center contact to one or the otheradjacent contact of that set as the control arm is twisted.

4. A' power controlling device as defined in claim 1, in which the innerend of the control arm is journaled for twisting movements and isconnected to the body of the arm by a flexible helical spring.

5. A power controlling device as defined in claim 1, in which saidresistance-varying means comprises a conductive rail mounted in saidhousing and connected to said first motor, a pair of resistors mountedin spaced relation alongside opposite end regions of said rail, saidresistors being connected to the positive and negative terminals,respectively, of said source of current, and a conductive slider carriedby said control arm and adapted to slide along said rail and connect itelectrically to one or the other of said resistors as the control arm ismoved translationally, said control arm movements shifting the slider sothat varying lengths of the operative resistor are interposed in themotor circuit.

6. A power controlling device as defined in claim 2, including a supportplate within said housing, and an element pivotally mounted on saidplate for movement about an axis perpendicular to the plane in which thetranslational movement of said arm takes place, said arm beingaccommodated for twisting movement within said element, whereby said armpivots about the pivot axis of said element during its translationalmovement but is permitted to twist with respect to said element.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 76 3,6 15 6/1904Laur 338-78 X 1,282,743 10/1918 Brenkert 338--78 8 Klopsteg 338201Porsche 200 -4 X Franzblau 338-78 X Shroyer 200-4 Pettit 338215 ORIS L.RADER, Primary Examiner.

B. DOBECK, Assistant Examiner.

1. IN A POWER CONTROLLING DEVICE FOR A REMOTE TOY EQUIPPED WITH TWOREVERSIBLE ELECTRIC MOTORS: A HOUSING HAVING A SLOT; A CONTROL ARMPROJECTING FROM THE INTERIOR OF THE HOUSING THROUGH SAID SLOT AND HAVINGA GRASPABLE OUTER END, THE INNER END OF SAID ARM BEING MOUNTED WITHINSAID HOUSING FOR BACK-AND-FORTH TWISTING MOVEMENTS AND ALSO FORBACK-AND-FORTH TRANSLATIONAL MOVEMENTS ALONG SAID SLOT; A SOURCE OFDIRECT CURRENT LOCATED WITHIN SAID HOUSING; FLEXIBLE LEAD WIRESEXTENDING THEREFROM TO SAID MOTORS, THERE BEING A SEPARATE CIRCUIT FOREACH MOTOR; A FIRST REVERSING SWITCH MEANS INTERPOSED IN ONE CIRCUIT ANDGOVERNED BY SAID TRANSLATIONAL MOVEMENTS OF THE CONTROL ARM FORREGULATING THE DIRECTION OF CURRENT FLOW TO THE FIRST OF SAID MOTORS; ASECOND REVERSING SWITCH MEANS INTERPOSED IN THE OTHER CIRCUIT ANDGOVERNED BY SAID TWISTING MOVEMENTS OF THE CONTROL ARM FOR REGULATIONTHE DIRECTION OF CURRENT FLOW TO THE SECOND OF SAID MOTORS, AND ARESISTANCE-VARYING MEANS IN ONE OF SAID CIRCUITS GOVERNED BY THECORRESPONDING MOVEMENTS OF SAID CONTROL ARM FOR CONTROLLING THEMAGNITUDE OF CURRENT FLOW TO ITS RESPECTIVE MOTOR.